Greg Smith, owner of Rodney's IGA in Draffenville, has confirmed the sale of the grocery store to Food Giant.

Smith says Food Giant could take over operation of the store as early as this weekend.

Rumors of Rodney's closure began circulating throughout the community before the Thanksgiving holiday when customers began noticing bare shelves.

Smith told The Tribune-Courier just last week his inventory was being depleted due to a breakdown of his refrigeration system, which left him without the ability to store items requiring cold or frozen storage. He said when he learned it was going to take time to fix the system, he had made the decision to stop delivery trucks, for fear his business would decline due to the refrigeration problem.

Rumors of his closure continued to persist, however, and when contacted today, Smith confirmed the sale of the grocery to Food Giant.

Food Giant owns about 100 stores in eight states including locations in Calvert City and Reidland.